The Seventh Year
by StMungo
Summary: MWPP era. The Marauders, Lily, and her two best friends have lots of fun, but unfortunetly suffer some heartache during their seventh and final year at Hogwarts.
1. Chapter 1

I edited this to take out the extra explanations that I found out weren't needed. )

Disclaimer: I, of course, do not own these characters. They are alllll JK's.

* * *

"Padfoot, what are you doing?" James Potter asked as the most handsome marauder Sirius Black pranced out of the bathroom with a sea foam green face mask on.

"Exfoliating, Prongs. You should try it," Sirius replied, flopping onto his bed. He, James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew had all shared a dormitory at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry since their first year. They were now entering their seventh and final year at Hogwarts. "And you too, Wormtail. You're looking a little blotchy. Moony, darling, what can I say? You have the perfect skin," Sirius joked.

"Don't I know it," Remus replied. "I think it has something to do with the wolf hormones."

"That's bull shit, Moony," said James.

"Yea, I know," Remus replied, grinning.

"What do ya say, Prongsy? Want some of this wonderful exfoliating avocado mask?" Sirius asked again.

"No, I'm good."

"Wormtail?" Sirius pleaded.

"Not today," Peter replied.

"Fine. When I'm the one with the lovely, blemish-free skin, and all the girls want me, and all you two have is zits, I'll be the one laughing," Sirius said, getting up to go wash the mask off.

"All the girls already want you, Sirius," Wormtail laughed.

"Whoa, Wormtail, let's not blow up his ego any bigger than it already is," James said, but Sirius didn't hear.

"Yea, well, what can I say? I'm the infamous, sexy, handsome, smart, cunning, marauder, Sirius Black." Sirius shouted over the sound of the faucet.

"Quit worshiping yourself, Sirius," James yelled back. He jumped off his bed and began rummaging through his trunk for the Marauder's Map. After a fair amount of searching, James found it intertwined in his Invisibility Cloak.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he muttered, and the old piece of yellowed parchment came to life. "Hmm. First day back and Snivellus is already asking for trouble," James said while staring at a small person labeled Severus Snape. Snape was on one of the staircases when it suddenly changed its route to the seventh floor corridor where the Gryffindor Tower was located. "Anyone want to go do...something...to him?" James asked with a smirk.

"I would Prongs, but I'm not allowed to be out after nine, unlike you and Moony," Sirius replied.

"Oh yeah! I'm Head Boy!" James remembered. "It's going to take me a while to get used to this. I'm going to go 'patrol' the halls, even though it's not my night. Be back later boys. Moony, you wanna come?"

"No thanks, Prongs. I'm kind of tired. Plus you might run into Lily," Remus said with a wink.

"I could only wish," James said in a dreamy voice while walking out of the dormitory.

"Is he ever going to get over her?" Sirius asked no one in particular.

"Nope," Remus and Peter replied simultaneously.

* * *

James walked out of the portrait hole while checking if his Head Boy badge was on straight. Looking up, he saw Snape walking with his hook-nose stuck in a book.

"Hello Snivellus!" James exclaimed, acting overjoyed to see his worst enemy walking through the school. He went up to Snape and put an arm around him. "How are you old buddy? I missed you over the summer holiday. It was torture not being able to see your greasy hair and huge nose everyday!"

"Get off me, Potter," Snape replied, pushing James's arm from his shoulder. James grabbed the book Snape was reading.

"Ooh, what's this? 'Ten Ways to be a Good Death Eater'?" James said, flipping through the book. "It looks very interesting." Snape took out his wand and held it up to James's chest. James looked up at Snape. "What are you going to do? Hex the Head Boy? I'm sure that'll go over well."

"I could care less. You being Head Boy is a joke anyway," Snape sneered.

"Yea, I know. But I'm stuck with the job, so you're going to have to deal with it. Twenty-five points from Slytherin for being an insufferable git and being out after hours," James said while throwing the book down and taking out his wand. He held it up to Snape's chest and the two of them stared at each other for a moment, until James finally broke the silence. "Stupefy," he muttered and Snape went very pale and fell to the floor. James smiled and kicked Snape's book halfway down the corridor.

"JAMES POTTER, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" He knew the girl's voice right away. It was Lily Evans, the Head Girl, and James's crush since third year. Although James loved Lily, he still dated many girls, none of them exclusively and none of them as pretty as her in his opinion. He was waiting to date Lily, but she, unlike most other girls, loathed James. "What did you do to him?"

"Stunned him. Why do you care?" James asked while rumpling his hair to make it stand up.

"Because that's not allowed! Even by the Head Boy. When will you grow up?" Lily huffed. "Ennervate," she said, waking Snape up. He jumped up and looked at James with a look of pure hate. "You need to go back to your common room, Severus," Lily added.

"Don't tell me what to do, mudblood," Snape sneered at Lily.

"Five points from Slytherin. Go. NOW," Lily yelled. Snape went to pick up his book and made his way back towards the stairs.

"You okay, Lily?" James asked.

"Yeah, I'm used to him. I've had to deal with it for six years," she replied with a shaky voice. He knew she wasn't okay, but he decided not to push it.

"Okay, let's go. Fortuna Major," said James to open up the portrait hole. He and Lily said goodnight and went seperate ways to their own dormitories.

* * *

James made his way up the boy's staircase and walked into his room. Peter was asleep in his bed, Remus was reading a rather large book about Hinkypunks and Grindylows, and Sirius was muttering random spells in Peter's direction.

"Wingardium Leviosa," Sirius whispered and Peter rose from his bed. Sirius levitated him over to the spare bed, pointed his wand at Peter's mouth, and muttered another spell. "Densaugeo," Sirius said, and Peter's teeth started protruding out of his mouth.

"Padfoot, you're awful," Remus said, looking up from his book and laughing.

"Yeah, I know," Sirius chuckled, lifting the curse. Peter's two front teeth were about 6 inches longer than normal. "Oy! Prongs! How was Snivellus?"

"Same old greasy-haired git. I stunned him, but Lily caught me," James said.

"Oooh, so you did run into Lily?" Remus smirked.

"Yeah," James said in a disappointed tone. "But she was too mad at me for stunning Snivellus for me to try to ask her out again. Not that she would have accepted anyway."

"Sorry mate," Remus sympathized. Sirius jumped off his bed and retrieved a case of Butterbeer and a Muggle radio that he had charmed to work in the school from his trunk. He flipped on the radio, and turned the volume up as loud as possible in attempt to lighten the mood. "If I can't have you, I don't want nobody baby!" the radio blared.

"BUT YOU'VE STILL GOT ME, Prongsy!" Sirius roared over the radio, jumping up on his bed and throwing each of them a bottle of Butterbeer. Peter was awoken by the sudden outburst.

"What in 'loody 'ell?" he tried to scream, but couldn't because of his oversized teeth. The three other seventeen year old boys all started rolling on the floor with laughter. "'elp me, you 'upid 'rats!!!!" Remus pointed his wand at Peter and muttered the countercurse. "THAT WAS NOT FUNNY! WHO WAS IT?" he yelled over the loud music. James and Remus both pointed at Sirius, and Peter lunged for him. The short, pudgy boy attempted to tackle tall, strong Sirius, but Padfoot easily pinned him to the floor. "You win," Peter laughed. The four boys stayed up until late that night, only receiving a few short hours asleep before their first day back to classes.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello! Thanks to milky way bar, Away with the Fairies4, Miss Piratess, dracosgirl, Captain Notal, and EnchantedBeauty (or Lauren, my beta, and the girl in the story) for reviewing! I really appreciate it! Please keep it up. =D  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anyone you recognize. =)

* * *

"Hey guys," James said taking a seat by Remus in the Great Hall.  
  
"Here's your schedule," Remus handed him a piece of parchment. "Today we've got double Potions, Care of Magical Creatures, and Transfiguration. And I've got Arithmancy as well."  
  
"Bugger. We haven't had double Potions since fifth year. But if that's what it takes to be an Auror, I guess I'll have to deal with it," James said taking a bite of his eggs. "But Transfiguration is always fun," he said with his mouth full.  
  
"Most definitely," Sirius replied. "Look, Prongs, here comes Evans." James looked up so fast it hurt his neck. He stared at her for a moment until—  
  
"Potter, what are you looking at you stupid prat?" Lily said, glaring at him. James ran a hand through his hair, making it stand up.  
  
"You, my precious. Won't you do me the honor and go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?" James pleaded.  
  
"No," Lily stated with finality in her voice. She sat down and immediately started chatting with her two best friends Lauren Cornett and Sara George. James looked back at the marauders. Remus and Sirius both looked amused.  
  
"Shut up," he said after a moment of them staring at him.  
  
"We didn't say anything, Prongsy. Honestly, you should get your ears checked," Sirius grinned. James looked around.  
  
"Where'd Peter go?" he asked noticing the empty space beside Sirius.  
  
"He had some stuff he 'had to do' before Potions. He said he'd meet us in the dungeons," Sirius explained. "We had better go. We don't want to be late for Montague's class, he'd probably Crucio us." He said standing up and grabbing his bag. James and Remus followed suit and the three of them walked out of the Great Hall together.

* * *

"Where is Peter," Remus muttered under his breath while Professor Montague was talking about the illegal potion, Veritaserum. The three boys were in their usual seats in the back of the classroom.  
  
"I don't know, but he'd better get here soon," James whispered.  
  
"OUCH!" Sirius called, causing the majority of the class to turn around.  
  
"Mr. Black, what is wrong?" Professor Montague asked. Sirius looked down at his ankle and saw a small grey garden rat looking up at him.  
  
"I...I just stubbed my toe," Sirius lied. He looked over at Lily, who was sitting by a Hufflepuff girl, and she rolled her eyes at him.  
  
"Five points from Gryffindor for disrupting the class," Montague stated and went back to his lesson. Sirius poked James in the side, "Look who's here." James glanced down and saw the rat. Sirius glimpsed around to see if anyone was looking, and then nodded to the rat. The rat transformed into Peter, and he went to his seat by Remus.  
  
"When did you get here," Remus whispered quietly.  
  
"Just now," Peter replied just as quietly.  
  
"Honestly, Peter, you're going to get us caught one of these days," James whispered over to him. Montague turned around.  
  
"You four, are you done conversing for the moment?" he sneered.  
  
"Sorry, Professor," Remus replied for the four of them.  
  
"Five more points from Gryffindor," their fellow Gryffindors groaned. "Honestly, a prefect and the Head Boy disrupting the class..." he drawled. "I would expect better. On we go. Veritaserum is..."  
  
James glanced at each of the marauders in disgust from their point loss, and then continued to take awful notes and stare at Lily from behind.

* * *

The marauders walked back up the castle having just finished their first Care of Magical Creatures lesson. It was warm September day, and the boys were sweating after a long lesson in the outdoors.  
  
"Did you see Professor Kettleburn's hand? He was missing one of his fingers!" Peter laughed.  
  
"Yeah, I wonder what he did to lose it. Maybe he was trying to tame a dragon," Sirius said in a mystified tone.  
  
"Yeah, that's it Padfoot. The teacher that knows everything there is to know about magical creatures tried to tame a dragon. Uh huh," James replied sarcastically.  
  
"It was just a suggestion," Sirius said walking up to two boys who were deep in conversation. "Oh lookie! It's Snivellus and Mail-boy! What a bloody-good surprise." Lucius and Severus stopped their conversation and looked up at Sirius.  
  
"Hello Sirius," Lucius sneered.  
  
"Hi Lucius! How are you? I can't wait 'til you marry my dear cousin, Narcissa! Then we will be related! How wonderful!" Sirius said giddily.  
  
"Pleasure," he said as if he were disgusted by the thought. "Pity you won't be at the wedding."  
  
"Yeah, that is quite a bugger. But!" Sirius said, pulling out his wand. "I did get you a wedding present!" He conjured a large, gold platter, and then waved his wand again and it filled with a generous amount of boogers. The marauders all started into fits of laughter, and Snape glared at each of them. "Here you go!" Sirius added and shoved the platter into Lucius's face. James, Remus, and Peter were all rolling on the floor laughing, and Sirius grinned. "Have a wonderful day Lucius! Snivellus." He nodded his head in farewell. Snape reached for his wand.  
  
"Oh no, I wouldn't do that. Head Boy Jamsie can take as many points as he wants from Slytherin if he has good reason," Sirius grinned. "Let's go boys," he said, helping each of them up, and they made their way to the Great Hall for lunch.

* * *

The four boys finished their steak-and-kidney pie and got up to go to Transfiguration. As they were walking of the Great Hall, Lucius and Snape walked in. They were, again, in deep conversation and not paying attention to where they were going. Lucius bumped into Sirius and looked up. "Lucius, I believe you missed one," Sirius said, picking a green piece of booger out of Lucius' long silver-blonde hair. Lucius snarled at him and walked off. Sirius grinned. "First prank of the year was a complete success."  
  
James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter all took their seats in the back of McGonnagal's classroom. James and Sirius sat at one of the desks, Peter and Remus at one beside them. James and Sirius were both at the top of their class, although they never listened and rarely took notes.  
  
"Honestly, Prongs, I don't see why we came to school this year. We are uncommonly brilliant and witty. We could have started our own shop or something!" Sirius said aloud to James.  
  
"Honestly, Mr. Black, it's the beginning of your last year here, and you have already begun the annoying disturbances! Would you kindly keep your chatting with Mr. Potter to a minimum? Some people in this class want to learn!" Professor McGonnagal snapped.  
  
Sirius stood up. "I am terribly sorry, Professor. Next time I want to talk to James, I'll be quieter," he grinned.  
  
She stared at him over her tiny, rectangle-lensed glasses, "I guess that's better than nothing." She turned around and tried to hide a grin. Sirius and James were by far two of her favorite students, but she was the hardest on them.  
  
James smirked at Sirius and turned back to the front. Lily was sitting in the third row from the front, directly in front of James. He stared at her for a moment and then back to Sirius. "The only reason I came back was to see Lily everyday."  
  
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Prongs, you are lovesick!" he whispered.  
  
"So?" James muttered, resuming his deep stare at Lily.

* * *

After another hopeful attempt of James asking Lily to Hogsmeade, Lily, Sara, and Lauren were the first to make their way back to the Gryffindor Common Room.  
  
"Really, Lily, why won't you give him a chance?" Lauren asked. She brushed her long dark brown, almost black, hair behind her ear. Lauren was shorter and more petite than Lily, and she had round blue eyes. She was half-blood, her mum a witch; dad a muggle. Of the three of them, she was the most outgoing.  
  
"Because he's an arrogant git, that's why!" Lily replied, nearly shouting.  
  
"He's not an arrogant git! He's really nice," Sara suggested. Sara had shoulder length, shiny, auburn hair, and almond-shaped brown eyes. She was the child of a wizard and a witch, but each of her parents had been muggle- born. "I mean, he might rumple his hair a lot to make it look messy, and he might show off with that awful snitch too often, and he might walk around school as if he were a king, but really he's not that bad!"  
  
"Yes, he is," Lily stated, walking up to the Fat Lady. "Fortuna Major."  
  
"No, he really isn't that bad, Lily. You really, REALLY, should give him a chance. And put in a good word for me to Remus, would you?" Lauren grinned and sat down in her favorite armchair by the fireplace.  
  
"For you to Remus?" Sara asked, smiling and sitting by Lily on the couch. "Do you fancy him?"  
  
"Maybe," Lauren stated, beginning to blush. Lily had her mouth open in awe.  
  
"So that's who you were staring at today in Arithmancy, huh?" Lily inquired.  
  
"Yeah," Lauren grinned. "You're lucky, Lily. One of the marauders fancies you. I would absolutely love to go to Hogsmeade with Remus for a day."  
  
"Well, I would most definitely not want to go with James," Lily said in indignation.  
  
"We can't change your mind for you I guess. It would be really fun if the three of us were dating marauders, and we got to go on triple dates or something though," Sara added.  
  
"Which one have you fallen for, Sara?" Lily asked. "Is it Sirius or Peter? Please say Peter. Sirius is so dumb."  
  
"Ugh, Peter? He's so...ratty. But Sirius, he's so perfect," Sara swooned.  
  
"My gosh," Lily said, exasperated. Her friends were going mad. "You two are both weird you know."  
  
"Yeah, so?" Sara and Lauren said simultaneously.  
  
"Come on, we've all got Arithmancy and Transfiguration homework to do."  
  
"But it's the first day back to classes, and we don't have either of those classes again until Wednesday!" Sara moaned.  
  
"But I don't have rounds tonight, and I do tomorrow. Come on, let's go get our books and go to the library," Lily suggested. Lauren and Sara huffed and followed Lily up to their dormitory.  
  
As they were walking out of the portrait hole, the three girls bumped into the marauders.  
  
"Hello again, Lily!" James exclaimed. "I'll ask once more, would you l--"  
  
"No James. Remember you have rounds tonight," Lily said pleasantly.  
  
James frowned; Lauren and Sara rolled their eyes and sighed. The four boys went on into the common room.  
  
Lily began walking very fast in the wrong direction.  
  
"Wrong way, Lils," Sara called out.  
  
"Oh...right," Lily turned around. "I will never go anywhere with that stupid James Potter...EVER!"  
  
Lauren and Sara stayed a step behind her. "She likes him, she just doesn't know it yet," Lauren whispered. Sara nodded, silently agreeing, and they jogged to catch up with Lily. 


	3. Chapter 3

Sara is a metamorphagus. I forgot to mention that in the last chapter. Actually, I just decided I wanted her to be one while writing this chapter. =D I am so sorry about this chapter being so late. I've been done with it forever, but they just started accepting files from WordPad, and my Microsoft Word has been screwed up, so I wasn't able to upload it. But here it is!

Please review!

* * *

Lily, Sara, and Lauren sat in front of the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, books and parchment full of notes strewn all around them. It was a Saturday night and students were around them playing games of Exploding Snap, chatting and laughing loudly. The noise was beginning to bother the three girls who were determined to finish their Defense Against the Dark Arts essay so they would have Sunday to do what they wanted.

"Crikey, guys. We need a book on the Unforgivable Curses to do this," Sara realized after ten minutes of trying to focus on her essay. "We can't do this tonight. Let's just finish tomorrow." She shut her book and put it in her bag.

"Okay, we aren't getting anywhere anyway with this noise," Lily added, closing her book as well. Lauren was lying on her stomach asleep on the couch, drool dampening her parchment. She was mumbling something about dinosaurs. Lily got up and poked her in the side.

"Save me from the dinosaurs, Remus," she murmured, fidgeting but still in a deep slumber. Hearing his name, he stopped and looked at her oddly before turning to Sara and Lily (who were almost out of their seats giggling so hard).

"What was that about?" he asked the two of them.

"Oh, I dunno," Sara answered, grinning. "Maybe you should go save her, Remus."

He looked startled and blushed a deep crimson, but didn't walk away. Instead, he stood there watching Lauren sleep until Lily poked Lauren's side again, and this time she woke up. She propped herself back up on her elbows like she was when she was working and grabbed her quill. She went to dip it in her ink jar on the floor and noticed that there was a third person along with Lily and Sara. Lauren looked up, saw Remus, and immediatley blushed.

"Hey, Remus," she said finally after staring at him awkwardly for a moment.

"Hi Lauren," he replied, smiling. "Hope the dinosaurs didn't eat you or anything..."

The color drained out of Lauren's face. She looked at Remus, then Lily, then Sara. "Oh my God, was I having the dinosaur dream again?" She asked the two girls in a hushed voice. They both nodded, trying to hold back laughter, but failing. Lauren looked humilated.

She took a deep breath and looked back at Remus. "Some sexy man saved me this time, but he didn't reveal his identity."

"Oh, I think I know who it was..." Remus replied, grinning. Lauren looked thouroughly confused. "Anyway, I'll talk to you later, okay? I'm a little tired."

"Okay," she replied, still confused. He walked off and up the staircase to the boy's dormitories. "'Oh, I think I know who it was...' What did he mean by that?" Lauren inquired.

"Well, when Lily poked you the first time, you fidgeted and mumbled something like 'save me from the dinosaurs, Remus', right as he walked by," Sara answered. Lily was now covering her mouth trying to hide her laughter. Lauren looked as if she could puke.

"You've got to be kidding me," she replied, staring at Sara as though she would come out and say, "No, I'm just pulling your leg!" But Sara didn't. Instead, she shook her head and replied. "It was really quite funny."

"Yeah, Lauren, it was," Lily coaxed. "And Remus said he'd talk to you later, so that's a good thing."

"But he's always going to remember me drooling all over my parchment and mumbling about him saving me from dinosaurs!!!!" Lauren was hysterical. "And you guys didn't wake me up! Hmmph." She crossed her arms and looked at the ground furiously.

"I tried! I poked you in the side, but you didn't wake up! Remember that time during the summer after fifth year when you had Sara and I over and we tried to wake you up so we could find a bed to sleep on, but you didn't wake up, so we had to sleep on the floor?" Lily reminisced.

"That was an accident! I've said I'm sorry for that a million times! I'm sorry again!" Lauren whimpered.

"No, no, no! I wasn't trying to make you feel bad! I was just reminding you how hard it is to wake you up! We forgave you about that ages ago." Lily replied. "Anyway, Remus is not going to think you're weirder than he thought you were before," she joked.

Lauren's jaw dropped, but they could tell she was laughing on the inside. "I think I'm going to go to bed now."

"Me too, all that laughing made my stomach ache," Sara replied and Lauren glared at her. They all began climbing the stairs to the girls' dormitories, but abruptly stopped when they heard a male voice calling up to them.

"Goodnight, Lily!" James yelled from across the common room.

Lily rolled her eyes and replied: "Night, Potter." They continued up the stairs to the seventh year girls' room, and Lily to her Head Girl room which was just down the hall. As Head Girl and Boy, she and James had the privilege of having their own room. Lily had taken the room, James hadn't.

"Remember, we're going running in the morning, rain or shine!" Lauren half-shouted to Lily. "I've got to get in shape for Quidditch if we're going to win the Cup this year!"

"Yeah, I'll see you guys in the morning!"

"Night!" They both chimed, walking into their room.

"Goodnight," Lily replied. "Bertie Botts," she stated to the portrait of a mermaid that guarded her door. It was rather large for only one person, but that's what you got for being Head Girl. Lily was unusually tired for a plain Saturday, so she changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed. However, the second she laid down, she was forced to think about what challenge tomorrow brought.

Since third year, Lily had known about Remus's Lycanthropy. However, at the end of fifth year, she began to notice that not only was Remus tired after the full moon, his three best friends were as well. She didn't give it much thought. Then during September, she had seen something and had yet to tell the marauders. She wasn't required to tell them by any means, but she felt that if she didn't, it wouldn't be fair to them. Lily remembered what she saw like it was just yesterday...

Flashback

Lily sat in the windowseat that her Head Girl room was equipped with. She was reading the muggle novel Little Women for about the fiftieth time. Lily looked out the window and recalled first the many nights that Petunia had sat up with her reading it to her, then (when she finally learned to read), the many nights she stayed up reading it herself. She treasured the moments with her sister because after she had found out about her wizarding abilities, Petunia took an extreme disliking for her. Petunia called Lily a freak at every opportune moment, which really hurt Lily when she was younger. Now, however, Lily couldn't care less. She knew that Petunia was just jealous, so Lily took every opportunity to mention or use magic around her, in order to pay her back for her name-calling. Lily just smiled at the thought of Petunia's face when she would pull out her wand and mutter nonsense words under her breath, making Petunia jump out of her skin.

Finally coming back into focus, Lily looked at the moon. It was full, and she knew that poor Remus was probably having a hard time in the Shrieking Shack. The moon was casting a bright light down over the grounds, illuminating the Whomping Willow, Hagrid's hut, and the Forbidden Forest. She thought she saw something move, but she figured it was just Mrs. Norris or an owl, and looked back down to her book. Out of her peripheral vision, she saw something move again, and this time her curiosity got to her. She began searching the grounds for any sign of movement, her eyes falling to the Whomping Willow. There she saw three animals, a dog, a rat, and a stag, and a smile came to her face.

_The marauders_, she thought, not knowing how the thought entered her mind, but for some reason knowing it was right. _I wonder how they managed becoming Animagi under the teachers' noses. _She went back to her book and read for a while, eventually dozing off.

Of course, at that time she hadn't been thinking about telling them that she knew their secret. _Honestly, I don't know why I'm so nervous about telling James. I guess I could tell Sirius...but he might freak out. Or Peter...but he's just...Peter. It will be easiest just to tell James after a meeting, or something. I'm sure he wouldn't pass up the chance to stay after a meeting with me. Tomorrow's Sunday, there's one scheduled, so I can tell him then. No big deal! Really, Lily...why are you getting so worked up about this? _Lily continued into the early hours of the morning arguing with herself, finally falling asleep around two a.m..

Lily was woken up early by a loud banging on her door. "Come on, Lily!" She recognized Sara's voice almost instantly. "We're going for a jog this morning, remember?"

_Note to self: Don't stay up until the wee hours of the morning debating with yourself over something stupid and expect to be eager to run_, Lily thought.

"Lily, are you coming? Or should Lauren and I go without you?" Sara asked, exasperated.

Lily sat up, threw her legs over the edge of the bed, and rubbed her eyes. "I'm coming," she said simply, stifling a yawn.

"All right, then. We'll be in the common room waiting. Do try and hurry," Sara added, walking down the stairs.

It was mid-October, so Lily decided on a sweatshirt, sweatpants and trainers. She put her hair into a ponytail. Then, she grabbed her wand and watch that she was rather attached to. It was a sixteenth birthday present from her parents, and it reminded her of them when she wore it. Putting it on, she yawned and walked out of her dormitory.

Downstairs, Sara and Lauren waited impatiently for Lily to come. Both girls had decided on the same kinds of clothing. Today, Sara had long, dark brown hair that she pulled up into a ponytail. She was one of the few Metamorphmagi in the wizarding world, which had proved to be a blessing...and a curse...many times. Sometimes when she got really mad, her hair went very red and spiky, but that didn't tend to happen too often.

"Honestly!! I'm getting older by the minute!" Lauren said, eyeing the stairs hopefully.

"She'll be here in a second." Sara added. "Probably just tying her shoelaces."

"There are spells for that!" Lauren tended to get antsy in certain situations.

"But she's Muggle-born, she likes to do things the old-fashioned way."

"Yeah, I do," Lily said, walking up to the couch her two friends were sitting on. "Well, come on then. I'm here!"

They walked out the portrait hole, made their way down to the entrance Hall, and began their run.

* * *

James woke up rather early to an insufferable snoring coming from Mister Sirius Black. _Why didn't I take the Head Boy room?_ he questioned himself. _Oh yeah_, _because Sirius begged me to stay because he couldn't _live_ without his Jamsiepoo_.

James got up and went to sit in the windowsill, which he did on many mornings before the other marauders awoke. Grinning, he anticipated the night, for it was a full moon.

The sun had barely risen, but the rays were glistening on the lake. James looked away to the mountains, but then realized what he had seen. A smile came to his face. _Helping Lauren train for Quidditch? How nice! _he thought after seeing the three seventh year girls jogging around the lake. _I think I fancy a run._

James hurried out of the windowsill and went to his best friend's bed. "Padfoot?" He shook Sirius's shoulders. "Padfoot??" He pulled the covers off of him. "PADFOOT?" He got up onto his bed and began to jump. This was the Marauders' favorite way of waking each other up. Sirius's eyelids finally fluttered open.

"James Henry Potter, what in the name of Merlin do you want?" he mumbled.

"Quidditch training. We're going for a run!" James said enthusiastically.

"Sod off, Prongs," Sirius mumbled and went into another stupor.

James shook Sirius's shoulders again, and the sleepy boy opened his eyes. "I'm Quidditch captain, therefore I can force you to come out there with me," he grinned.

Sirius rolled his eyes and sat up. "Fine," he complied. "Moony likes to run, too. Should we wake him?"

"Nah, full moon's tonight. He's probably tired," James answered, changing his clothes.

Sirius grinned. "I forgot about that," he said, walking over to James's window that faced the lake. He noticed three girls jogging around the lake, and his face lit up. "Ah, I see why you want to go out there," he realized. "Don't want to miss a chance of seeing Evans, do you?"

James grinned. "Well, she hasn't been as awful to me lately, if you can imagine. She actually looks me in the eye at prefect meetings, and she smiles at me at mealtimes, and she helped me that one time in Potions when--"

"Shut up, Prongs."

"Okay," he looked out the window, still smiling.

"Let's go!" Sirius said, running out the door and down the stairs before James even had his left shoe on.

_Wonder who he's so keen on seeing?_

* * *

"Guys, do you mind scooting out a little bit? I'm getting squished in between the two of you!" Lauren pleaded with Lily and Sara.

"Sorry," the two of them huffed and moved over a little. It was the first sunny day since the start of October. The grass was damp, and every now and then they would hit a muddy spot.

"Why don't we walk a lap or so?" Sara suggested at the beginning of their fourth lap, and the three of them slowed their pace.

James and Sirius had just got out to the lake to begin their run, so they sprinted to catch up with the girls. James ran a lot faster than his companion.

"Getting tired, are you, Evans?" James asked, slowing to a jog by Lily's side. She rolled her eyes.

"Fancy seeing you on such an early morning, Potter," Lily said with mock happiness. "It just makes my day a little brighter," she added.

"Wonderful to see you too, Evans," James replied with no hint of sarcasm. "Padfoot and I just thought we'd join you three in your morning run."

Before Lily could reply, Lauren asked a good question. "Where's Remus?"

"Oh, he's tired," Sirius gasped, coming up beside Sara. "Bloody hell, Prongs! You run like a freaking deer!" he grinned, slowing to a walk.

"So I've been told. Anyway, Lauren, what'd'ya think about morning Quidditch team runs? With everyone, not just the three of us?"

"Whoa! What about us?" Sara asked.

"You can join! We're having try-outs for keeper and another chaser," James suggested.

"No thanks. I'm not one for broomsticks, they go too high." Sara's stomach churned at the thought. She hated heights.

"Me neither. I've got too much to do already. Plus, you need to get some younger students so you can teach them all your strategies," Lily added.

"Well, no one would mind if the two of you came along on a run, I'm sure," Sirius added, looking at Sara. _Oh God, I'm blushing. Good thing my face is already red, _she thought. "Maybe Remus'll come," he coaxed, eyeing Lauren. She looked away grinning.

"Come on, Sirius, we need to get some more running in, and I believe these ladies are about done," James smiled at them and ran off, wondering if the smile he "saw" on Lily's face was real.

"I wish I wasn't so terrified of heights! I would love to be on the team and see Sirius in Quidditch trousers at every practice!" Sara exclaimed when the marauders were out of earshot.

"It's a lovely sight," Lauren joked. Lily continued walking, looking somewhat dazed and deep in thought. _Maybe that Potter isn't so bad_, she thought to herself, _but he'll hate me after I tell him tonight. _

"Penny for your thoughts?" Sara asked, and Lily came back into focus.

"Nothing," she lied. "Let's pass the guys!" she exclaimed, and the three girls sprinted off to pass James and Sirius, laughing the whole way.

* * *

Lily walked through the dark rows of the Restricted Section looking carefully for a book on the Unforgivable Curses for her Defense Against the Dark Arts essay that she, Lauren, and Sara had failed to finish the night before. She finally found one and made her way back to the table where Lauren and Sara were discussing if they could resist the Imperius Curse.

"I doubt I could right now, but when I get the training I think I would be able to," Sara concluded. "Hey Lils-you find one?"

"Yeah, but I gotta go. I have a prefects' meeting!" Lily started stuffing quills and books into her bag. "Take notes for me."

"Of course," Lauren replied. "Go on and see James, why don't you?"

Lily stared at her with a pensive look on her face. "Okay," she said simply, and walked off.

She walked out of the library and began debating with herself. _I have to tell him tonight, or I never will. Seriously, Lily, you're acting as if this is a HUGE ordeal._

THUD! To Lily's great disgust, she realized she had bumped into Snape.

"Ugh, Mudblood. I need to go wash my robes. I might be a little late for the meeting," he sneered. Lily just glared at him for a minute, and then strode off without a word.

Snape just stood there watching Lily, then turned and started a different route to the meeting room. Lily continued walking and still not watching where she was going, bumped into the Head Boy. She looked at him, and negating thoughts immediately entered her mind. _I can't tell him tonight! What if he hates me after I tell him? He probably will, this is his secret, he'll think I spied on him and...and..._

"Nicely done," he said.

"Thanks," she replied, and surprisingly didn't quicken her pace or try to lose James in any other way. _I just have to do it. I'll tell him what I really think of it. Come on Lily, you're not in Gryffindor to be a coward! _

"I need to talk to you after the meeting." She hesitated. "Alone."

"Oh," James was dumbfounded. _Alone? She wants to talk to me alone? It must be the full moon_, he thought. "Of course, after the meeting," he confirmed.

* * *

All the prefects had departed and the Head Boy and Girl were left alone. Thankfully, no one except James and Lily had noticed that Remus was missing from the group of prefects.

"All right Evans, what did you want to talk about?" James asked, sitting on the round table.

_Here goes nothing._ "I know your secret," Lily said simply.

James kept his vacant expression. His mind, however, was flooding with questions. _How could she know? When did she find out? Who the hell told her?_ "What secret?" he said aloud.

"You know...Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs," she said. "And of course I know about Remus."

"I don't know what you're talking about. Those are just nicknames," James said, shrugging his shoulders. _I guess it really is the full moon_, he thought.

"Stop playing dumb, James." He smirked at this. _She actually called me James_. She was staring at him now. "I've known about Remus since third year, and I picked up on you guys last month."

James ran a hand through his hair making it stand up. "Tell me what you know," he stated.

She sat on the table beside him and began. "Well, I started noticing Remus' absences every month, so I looked into it. That was pretty easy. But then at the end of fifth year, I started noticing the other three of you were also very tired after the full moon. Then about a month ago, I happened to see a dog, rat and a stag walking out to the Whomping Willow. I don't know why, but I knew it was you three," she looked at him. "And instead of giving you the lecture the mature person in me says you need, I'm going to tell you what I really think." He looked very interested in her opinion. "I think it's wonderful. Awfully dangerous, but wonderful."

James was stunned. She really did know their secret. _And she doesn't protest! _"Wow. That took a lot of thinking. You're clever, Lily. Very clever."

"Thanks." _Did he just call me Lily? I know he fancies me, but it's usually 'Evans'...oh well._

James got up and stood in front of her, and grabbed her hands. "You can't tell anyone," he pleaded. _She has really soft hands, _he thought. _They're very nice. _

"Oh, I can," she grinned at his bulging eyeballs, that looked three times bigger through his glasses, and tightened grip on her hands. _I like his hands, they're rough but...nice_, she thought. "But I won't. You better go, Sirius and Peter will be waiting..." she said, looking out the window at the rising orb.

"Thanks, Lily," he said, pulling her into a hug. And to both of their surprise, she hugged back.


	4. Chapter 4

Authors Note: Wow, It's been a really really long time. Thanks _so_ much to Pam, my awesome beta.

The creative names of Dora Explora and Oswald are credited to Lauren, who thought it would be funny if I put a reference to two of her favorite shows in my story. Kudos to you, Lauren, for being an odd bird. :)

Keep reviewing!

* * *

"Today, we're going to be learning how to transfigure humans," Professor McGonagall said to her N.E.W.T. class, which consisted of James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Lauren, Sara, two Hufflepuffs, three Ravenclaws, and one Slytherin. Their class was more advanced than the regular seventh-year class, hence the reason it was a bit smaller.

Considering the fact that James and Sirius had already achieved the most difficult aspect of Transfiguration, they, as usual, weren't listening. Instead, Sirius put a Silencing Charm around their desk, and they started discussing the new people chosen for the Quidditch team, Dora Explora (Chaser) and Oswald Scott (Keeper). They were both third years and insanely talented for their age.

"I don't see how we can lose the Cup this year, Padfoot. Dora and Oswald are exquisite!" Not minding the pouring October rain, James had held tryouts every day that week to find the perfect players.

"I agree," Sirius replied. "But Camille is going to have to do a little better at Seeking then she did last year." Camille Johnson was a fifth year who played Seeker. She was good, but had a small complex with people watching her play. However, she did well enough to get the Gryffindors second place the previous year.

"We did okay last year, second place. You just don't like Camille because she's the only girl you've dated that's broken up with you," James reminded Sirius. True enough, Sirius had always been the one to break up with whomever he was dating, except for Camille.

"Thanks for reminding me," said Sirius gloomily.

"No problem. You need an ego-deflater every once in a while." James smirked. "I wish Lily would have tried out for Keeper. I bet she would have been splendid."

"Or Sara. She looks like she would have been a good Chaser," Sirius stared at her. James looked thoroughly amused.

"Oh, does little Padfoot have a crushy-wushy?" He inquired.

Sirius was startled at the question. "Maybe," he grinned.

James changed his tone from childish to serious. "She's quiet, Padfoot. A lot like Lily, not much of a wild person. I don't know if you two would get along."

"Nonsense! I've watched her with Lily and Lauren. She laughs with them all the time!" Sirius said loudly, flailing his arms. Professor McGonagall saw him and looked at him oddly, but he just grinned apologetically and she went on with the lesson.

"Yes, but that's different. They're her best friends. When the four of us," James was referring to the Marauders, "aren't together, we aren't the same people." Judging by Sirius's disbelieving face, he changed his mind. "Okay, maybe we're the same all the time. But they aren't! I've watched Lily for _four years now_, and she's completely different around Sara and Lauren than she is around, say, Heather Clearwater."

"Who's Heather Clearwater?"

"That Ravenclaw you dated back in fifth year," James answered exasperatedly.

"Blonde, curly hair? She was about an eight on my kissing scale, if I remember correctly," Sirius was looking up at the ceiling, deep in thought.

James rolled his eyes. "Anyway, back to the Sara issue. She might be too..._mature_...for you. Lauren is more your type. Outgoing and such."

"No, Lauren fancies Remus. Remus fancies Lauren. They just haven't figured each other out yet." said Sirius, as if it was a known fact. James looked surprised. "Plus, I dated Lauren back in second year," he added as an afterthought.

"Really? Lauren and Remus. She's loud, he's quiet. I guess opposites attract," James thought aloud.

"Exactly my reasoning. What do you say, Prongs? Five Galleons if I ask Sara to Hogsmeade, she'll accept," Sirius bargained.

"Fair enough," James shook Sirius's outstreched hand.

"So, are you going to ask Lily?" Sirius winked.

"No," James said sadly.

"And why not?"

"She's finally having civilized conversation with me and I'm afraid if I ask her out, she'll completely reject me," James explained.

"But you're still using the same Potter charm on her aren't you?"

"Of course."

* * *

Lauren and Sara sat at a table in the corner of the Gryffindor common room pining over their Arithmancy homework. Lauren enjoyed the subject ten times more than Sara, who was staring into space as Lauren solved equations. _I don't know why I'm taking this; I don't need it to be an Auror_, she thought. _But, if Lauren really wants to be accepted into the Gringotts Curse Breaking program, then I guess Lily and I will have to grin and bear it through the rest of the term or else she'd be taking it all alone...Maybe she'll be up for a game of chess..._

"I'm tired of doing homework. Want to play chess?" Sara suggested.

"Justonesecond," mumbled Lauren, who was checking over her equations, making sure she got them all correct. Finally, she closed her book, put away her quill, and agreed to a game.

Sirius, who was sitting in front of the fireplace playing Exploding Snap with Peter, looked over to the two girls and grinned.

"Whatcha' looking at?" Peter asked innocently.

"Sara," said Sirius. "I'm going to ask her to Hogsmeade, I just don't know when."

Peter looked over to Lauren and Sara, who were laughing at something between themselves. Sara was sporting a dirty-blonde bob today, and it bounced as she giggled.

"Why don't you ask her now?" Peter suggested.

"What if she says no?" Sirius said worriedly.

"You're Sirius Black. Hogwarts' most eligible bachelor, voted best looking six out of seven years. If she says no, you can just ask some fifth or sixth year, and they'll go with you," said Peter.

"Shup up, Wormtail," Sirius said, grinning. "I'll be right back." He got up and walked over to the girls' table, and they started laughing again.

"Laughing at me?" he asked cunningly, crossing his arms.

"Of course," Lauren answered with a friendly smile.

Sirius looked at the chessboard. "Who's winning?" He asked, looking at the scattered peices of stone all over the side of the board. He could tell by looking that neither of the girls were very good at chess.

"I am," Sara said matter-of-factly. "I'm beating her by one pawn," she confessed.

Sirius laughed, sat down beside Sara, and began giving her pointers on where to move. Sara's heart was going a mile a minute, and she thought she was going to stop breathing, but she continued to stay calm.

"Checkmate," Sara and Sirius said together, and Lauren's king dropped his sword.

"Well...poop...I'm going to turn in, I think. I didn't sleep well last night. Good night!" Lauren said, picking up her bag and muttering "Reparo!" to the chess peices. They magicked themselves back together, and Lauren put them away.

"I think I'm going to turn in as well," Sara added and stood up, swinging her bag over her shoulder.

"Can I have a word really quick?" Sirius asked uncomfortably, looking at Sara. Both Sirius and Sara looked at Lauren, and she quickly got the point.

"Okay, see you in a bit, Sara. Good night, Sirius," she said and turned toward the girls' staircase.

Sirius smirked. "Now that she's gone, I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"Would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me tomorrow?" he asked, smiling.

Sara's eyes about popped out of her sockets and she grinned widely. "Yeah, that would be great," she said.

"Awesome. Meet you in the Great Hall for breakfast?"

"Sounds good," replied Sara.

"You know, I've been wanting to ask you for a while now. I just never had the courage," said Sirius, looking at the floor as he spoke.

Sara was perplexed by that comment. _Well damn, God knows I would have loved to go_, she thought."I would have accepted," she said nicely.

"Really?"

"Of course," she replied. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, can't wait," he grinned, and did something she was definetly not expecting. He kissed her lightly on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Sirius," she said sweetly.

"Goodnight," he replied. He walked back towards Peter, and she to the girls' dormitory. When Sara got to the stairs, she sprinted up them and burst into her room grinning broadly.

"LAUREN!!!!!" Sara yelled, the excitement very evident in her voice. She walked out of their lavatory in her bathrobe and a grin spread across her face. "He asked me to Hogsmeade! Sirius Black asked ME to Hogsmeade!!!"

For a minute they stood in the middle of the room squealing with joy until their very annoying, very stupid roomates Becca Becker and Yvonne Hogalsby came in. They looked at Sara and Lauren oddly. "What's up?" Becca asked in her snooty voice.

Not even the stupidity of Becca and Yvonne could break Sara's excitement. "Sirius has just asked me to Hogsmeade!" She said, smiling toothily.

"Oh," Yvonne and Becca said together. Yvonne started raving about how Sirius went out with her and dumped her for some Hufflepuff, though Sara wasn't listening.

"Let's go to Lily's room, maybe she's back," Lauren muttered. "We'll be back later, girls," she said in her best impression of their voices, and she and Sara left the room.

When getting to Lily's door, they were greeted by the portrait of the mermaid, who was flipping her tail around gracefully. "Hi Lauren and Sara," she said excitedly. Unlike most merpeople, Lily's guard was very nice. "Lily hasn't come in yet tonight, but if you guess her password I'll let you in."

"Okay, bubotuber?" Sara guessed.

"Head Girl? Fizzing Whizbees? Fairy lights? Pepper Imps? Chocolate Frogs? Bertie Botts?"

"Bingo," the mermaid said, and the door opened.

"Thanks," both girls said and walked in. They both started jumping on Lily's very bouncy king-sized four-poster. After a few minutes, they heard Lily talking to the portrait.

"You have visitors!" The mermaid exclaimed. "They guessed the password, so I let them in, is that all right?"

"If it's Lauren or Sara you can let them in any time, but no one else, okay?" they heard Lily say, "Bertie Botts." Lily walked in and smiled at her two bouncing friends.

"Hey Lils!" Lauren called from her bed.

"Hey guys," she replied. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Jumping," they both said. Lily grinned and got up onto the bed with them and began jumping with them.

"You look happy," Lily said to Sara. It was the truth, she did look happy. She hadn't quit grinning since she came up from the common room.

"I am happy," replied Sara.

"And why is that?" Lily asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Sirius asked me to Hogsmeade!" Sara exclaimed and broke into a huge smile.

Lily stopped jumping and gave Sara a hug. "As much as Sirius annoys me, I'm happy for you!"

"So I guess its just you and me tomorrow, Lily," Lauren said.

"Yeah, I guess so," Lily replied.

* * *

The next morning, Sara took ten times longer than usual to get ready. She changed her hair too many times to count, and finally decided on long and auburn. She wore a brown sweater that brought out the color of her eyes, her favorite pair of blue jeans, and brown boots. She put on a touch of make-up, and then found a pair of small hoop earrings.

"Ready!" Sara called, walking out of the bathroom. Lauren rolled her eyes for having to wait so long, handed Sara her purse, and they left for breakfast.

Lily looked up from her seat in the Great Hall, which was very ornate with Halloween decorations, to see her two best friends walking in. "It took you long enough!" she called as they walked up.

"Yeah, I wanted to look perfect," Sara said dreamily.

"I'm sorry it didn't work out," Lily replied. Sara gaped at her, and Lily and Lauren laughed. "Only joking! You look fine."

"Thanks." The three girls continued chatting and eating their breakfast, and a few minutes later three of the Marauders came into the Great Hall.

"Good morning," Sirius said cheerfully, sitting down beside her. James took a seat beside him, and Remus sat down in front of Lauren.

"Same to you," she replied. Each of the boys started eating so ravenously, it was sickening.

"Where's Peter?" Lily asked after a minute.

"Heshadfyoonrulorshanterrude," James replied with a full mouth.

"Sorry, I lost you after ashuhashdaysh," she replied cooly.

"He had to go to a funeral for his Aunt Gertrude," James said after swallowing.

"Were they close?" Lauren asked.

"Yeah. He was pretty torn up about it. Got the letter last night." Remus answered. The six finished eating their breakfast silently, and then left the Great Hall to head to Hogsmeade.

* * *

The village was beautifully decorated for the most celebrated holiday in the Wizarding World. Jack-o-lanterns were lit on every corner; streamers hung from shop to shop; skulls, spiders, and other ornaments hovered in the sky over the lane. The smell of pumpkin and spices was intoxicating. And to make it all better, it was the perfect temperature. No one needed their cloaks, but long sleeves were necessary.

Before the group broke up, Remus tapped Lauren's shoulder and waved her to the side. "Would you like to have a Butterbeer later?" He asked abruptly.

Lauren was shocked and flattered. "Sure, what time?"

"Is one okay?"

"Yeah, see you then."

"See you."

Remus smiled and walked off, leaving Lauren alone. She stood in the same spot wide-eyed and mouth partially open for a while, until Lily waved her hand in front of Lauren's frozen face.

"You alive?" Lily asked humorously.

"Uh huh."

"What happened?"

"Remus asked me to have a Butterbeer with him later," she answered dreamily. Really it wasn't something to get overly excited about, but Lauren tended to obsess over things.

"Congratulations!" Lily said excitedly.

Lauren snapped back into reality. "Remus asked me to have a Butterbeer with him!!!!!" She repeated squealing and jumping up and down.

"Calm...down..." Lily coaxed, pretending to fan Lauren.

"Right," she straightened up and put a sophisticated face on. "Where shall we go?"

"Honeydukes?" Lily suggested.

"Okay!" Lauren said hyperly, and she hooked arms with Lily and together they skipped off to the sweet shop.

* * *

Sara and Sirius walked out of Zonko's; Sirius's pockets bulging. He had bought a rather large variety of things and had even persuaded Sara, who didn't regularly purchase joke items, to buy three Dungbombs and a fake wand. They walked down the lane close together, laughing about something unknown to everyone else. Both teenagers looked genuinely happy.

Not paying attention to where they were going, the pair had inadvertantly started down the dirt road leading to the Shrieking Shack. Now when they laughed, it echoed, for the alley was completely deserted. They began climbing the small hill leading up to the Shack, and found a large tree to sit under.

Sitting in front of the legendary haunted house, Sara and Sirius involuntarly began to talk about it. "Do you think the Shack is haunted?" Sara asked. She herself didn't think it was. She had heard the stories about the howling and such at night, but she had never witnessed it, therefore not really believing it.

"No," Sirius answered quickly. He knew the truth, of course, and he didn't want to lie like he was supposed to and exaggerate the rumor. "I've never believed it was."

Sara somehow wasn't surprised at this remark. "I've never believed it either," she replied.

"Really? I thought most girls were terrified of this place!" Sirius added. Truthfully, every girl he had dated and spoken to about the legend had thouroughly believed it. Then again, most of the girls he had dated were complete airheads, so that didn't say much.

"Most girls are. But then again, most girls are gullible, and I am _not_ gullible," Sara said defiantly.

"Really?" he asked cocking an eyebrow.

"Hey look! It's a flying carpet!" Sirius called a few minutes later, jumping up and pointing out into space in front of the Shack.

Sara stood up beside him and looked around, "Where?"

Sirius began to laugh. "So much for not being gullible," he said. Sara gaped at him and crossed her arms. She tried to frown, but her lip was twitching.

Sirius held his hand out and took Sara's. "Let's go get a drink."

* * *

"What time is it?" Lauren asked Lily for the thirty-second time.

"Twelve fifty. You can go now," Lily answered. Lauren's stomach flipped.

"Do I look all right? Is my hair straight? What about my make-up?" She started combing her hair with her fingers and pulled out her vanilla lip gloss that she considered a bare necessity.

Lily grabbed Lauren's wrists in attempt to calm her down. "You look fine. Just go!"

"Are you sure you'll be okay by yourself?" Lauren asked, her voice full of concern.

"I'll be just fine! Don't worry about me!" Lily insisted.

"I feel bad leaving you alone."

"I swear, Lauren, I'm fine. You go flirt with Remus, and I'll shop. You're the one missing out, you know."

Lauren stuck her tongue out at Lily. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yeah, have fun! Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

"All right, bye!" Lauren called, and practically ran up the lane towards the pub.

* * *

"I wonder where she is," Remus said timidly to James, who was having a quick drink before Lauren arrived.

"No idea. Maybe she's standing you up, Moony," James joked. Obviously, Remus hadn't thought about this because he paled and a frightened look spread across his face. James saw this and immediatly took it back. "I'm just kidding. She wouldn't ever do that. She loves you to death."

"Really?"

"Uh huh. Here she comes," James replied. Lauren had just walked into the pub and Remus waved her over.

"Hey Remus. James..." she said, giving him an odd look.

"Oh, I was just having a quick drink with 'ole Moony here. Which way did Lily go?" James asked.

"I think she had to buy a new quill and some parchment. Why?"

"Just wondering. See you two lovebirds later," James said, giving them a wink and waltzing out of the pub.

* * *

James followed Lauren's instructions and headed for the small supply shop that was down the lane. The shop was vacant, except for one red-head and the owner, a very old woman who couldn't hear worth a Knut. James tiptoed up behind Lily and put his hands over her eyes. "Guess who!" He called.

Lily knew immediatly who it was. "Hello James," she said nicely.

"Hey. I got kicked out of the Three Broomsticks by some werewolf and his girlfriend, so I thought I'd come find you," he said charmingly.

Lily was glad he had come. Even though she had only been by herself for a few minutes, she was already lonesome. James was good company. "Well, thanks, I guess."

"No problem, I figured you wouldn't want to look like a loser and walk around all by yourself."

"I look more like a loser walking with you," Lily joked.

James feigned offense. "Well, if you feel that way, I'll just go!" He said, walking out of the store. Lily bought her supplies and left the shop. Not to her surprise, James jumped out from behind the door yelling "boo". Lily laughed at him and strutted off, and of course James followed. Exactly what she wanted.

"You're not going to leave me alone are you?" She asked, the humor evident in her voice.

James shook his head defiantly. "Nope."

"Okay," she said simply. "Where do you want to go?"

"I haven't been to Zonko's yet."

"All right, to Zonko's we go," Lily said, and together they marched up the lane.

* * *

James walked up to the bar, smiling so big he could have lit up the room. "A couple of Butterbeers," he told Madam Rosmerta.

"Hey James. Who're you with this time?" She replied, grabbing two mugs and filling them with the gold drink.

James, if possible, smiled bigger than he was before. "Lily."

Madam Rosmerta laughed. "You're glowing, son. I've never seen you look this ecstatic. You must really like this one."

"I do," he replied.

"Is this the first date?" She asked, raising one eyebrow.

James shook his head, but continued smiling. "Not even a date, just a drink."

"Well, good luck with her," she smiled and handed him the Butterbeers. He passed right by Lauren and Remus walking back to his table, but not noticing. He was too happy to think about anything except Lily.

James sat down and gave her one of the drinks. She held her hand out, offering to give him money for the drink, but he pushed it away. "This one's on me. But if we drink anymore, you just might have to buy them. I spent a lot of money in Zonko's."

"Who says I want to have more than one Butterbeer with you anyway?" Lily said snootily.

James smirked. "How do you like the ring?" He said changing the subject. James had bought Lily a big pink ring at Zonko's and slipped it on her right pinky finger. The only person that could remove it was James, because it was charmed to stay on until the person who bought it took it off. Lily had pulled and pulled on it, but James had just laughed in her face. She now had to wait until he decided to remove it.

She rolled her eyes at his question. "It's just wonderful," she said sardonically. "May I ask when it will be removed?"

"Whenever I want it to be," James said happily. Lily crossed her arms and looked away. "Aw, come on. It's not that bad!"

"It is! It's bright pink! _And_ it henders my ability to use my wand!" She complained.

"Well, now every time you see, or feel, it, you'll think of me."

"And how much I can't stand you!" Lily said angrily.

"You don't mean that."

"Do so."

"Do not."

"Do so."

"Do not."

"Okay, do not."

"Thank you."

"You're so bloody welcome," Lily spat.

"You know you like the ring," James suggested humorously.

"I hate pink."

"Really? I thought all girls liked pink."

"I don't."

"Oh well in that case," James pulled out his wand and tapped the ring, "it shall be green. Now it brings out your eyes."

Lily rolled her eyes. "I guess its better than pink."

* * *

"Should we be getting back to the castle?" Sara asked Sirius as they walked through a less crowded Hogsmeade. The sun was setting and the feast would be beginning soon.

"No, I don't want this to end. This is the most fun I've had with someone---ever," Sirius replied honestly. He was having a wonderful time, and so was Sara.

"It doesn't have to end here."

"I was hoping you would say something like that," Sirius said reaching for Sara's hand. He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her.

"Really?" That was the only thing that could come out of her mouth.

"Yeah," he replied, giving her a light kiss. Just a peck, nothing spectacular, but Sara was still ecstatic. "Let's go," Sirius said quietly as he interlocked his hand with Sara's, and they started on their way back to Hogwarts.


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks for the reviews! Hope you like this chapter. Another big thanks to Pam, my awesome beta!!

* * *

"Good morning James," Lily said nicely, sitting down in front of him in the Great Hall for breakfast. She hadn't bothered getting dressed up since it was a Sunday; Lily was still wearing what she had slept in: sweatpants and a sweatshirt.

"Hello Evans," James replied.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine. And you?"

"Tired of this damn ring," Lily said coolly while buttering a piece of toast.

James grinned. "That's nice."

"Is not!" said Lily loudly, completely changing her tone. "Why won't you take it off of me?" She she added in a whimper.

"So that everytime you look at it, you think about me," James said proudly.

"Everytime I see it, I think about you in a negative way," she explained. "But, if you take it off, I'll think about you in a nice, positive way."

"Sweet talking doesn't work on me," said James.

"Come ON, James!" Lily said pathetically.

He looked at his watch and pretended to be surprised. "Oh! I've got to run. Quidditch practice! See you later!" He jumped up from the table, not letting Lily beg anymore. Her stomach made a funny jolt as she watched him leave, and she continued eating her toast.

"He is so stupid," Lily said to herself, shaking her head. "But so...great. No. I can't fall for James Potter. It's not possible. No. I won't do it! I will not do it!"

* * *

Sara and Sirius sat on the couch in front of the fireplace in the common room talking about their interests. Sirius took note that Sara liked all kinds of music...and singing and dancing to it, playing piano, Astronomy, weddings, dogs (_Score! _Sirius thought when she mentioned that), and writing. She hated Voldemort, heights, spiders, allergies, and really stupid people. Sara tried to remember that Sirius loved Quidditch, Fizzing Whizbees, the color blue, dogs, and was particularly interested in flying motorbikes. He hated bugs in general, Snape, and of course, Voldemort.

"It's really depressing that I can only play the piano during the holidays," Sara explained. "It's one of the things that I really miss when I'm here."

"I've played the piano before!" Sirius replied excitedly. "The Potters have one. I can play a really cool song called Chopsticks!"

Sara smiled. "I like that song."

"Me too," he replied. "I'd like to hear you play sometime. That is, _if_ you can play up to my caliber."

"That's not exactly possible here, is it?"

Sirius grinned. "I wouldn't say that."

Sara sat up and stared at him conspicuously. "What?"

"Meet me in here around nine tonight; I've got something I want to show you. That is, if you want to..."

"Of course I want to," she replied and gave him a huge hug.

* * *

Sara and Lily were having a rather boring Sunday afternoon. They sat in the common room playing their third game of wizard's chess since they had finished all of their homework and Lauren had Quidditch practice with James and Sirius.

Sara peered at the board. "It's your turn," she said to Lily, who was staring into space.

"What? Oh, sorry," She replied, snapping back into reality. Lily moved her bishop, and it bashed Sara's pawn in the head. Sara winced and made her move, noticing that Lily had gone back into a thoughtful gaze. She had her chin resting on her right hand, and for the first time Sara noticed her new ring.

Sara waved her own hand in front of Lily's face, and she widened her eyes and shook her head. "Sorry...I don't know what's wrong with me," she excused, peering back down at the board.

"New ring?" Sara asked, grabbing Lily's hand and pulling it up to where she could see it clearly.

"Yeah," Lily replied uncertainly.

"I know what this is! It's one of those joke rings! Who put it on you?" She asked excitedly.

Lily shifted uncomfortably in her chair and answered. "James. It's one of his schemes to get me to talk to him more. I keep asking him to take it off of me, but he won't. I guess his plan is working..."

Sara sighed dramatically and rolled her eyes, dropping Lily's hand. "You are so thick, Lily Elizabeth Evans."

"What?" Lily asked innocently.

"I think that Dumbledore made you and James Head Boy and Girl for a reason...everyone realizes that you guys are perfect each other, except you," Sara explained.

"James Potter is not right for me," Lily said forcefully, more to herself than to Sara.

"Are you sure?" Sara inquired.

"Yes," she said out loud, but her heart was telling her no.

* * *

Lily glanced at her watch and sighed. She was waiting for Remus and James to leave for the Prefects' meeting, since it was tradition that they left together. It was five 'til seven already, and they had to be there to set everything up. She stomped over to the boy's staircases, hesitated, then stomped up them too. She found the seventh year dormitory quite easily and knocked on the door. "Remus John Lupin and James Henry Potter, we're going to be late if you don't hurry up!!"

"Hold on!" She heard James's voice say distantly. Then, the door opened and there stood a very wet James Potter with a towel wrapped around his waist._ My God_, she thought, staring him up and down. Her knees started to give out, so she moved to where she had support from the doorjamb to lean on. She couldn't help but notice how fit James was. He was slender yet very muscular. "Lily?" he asked, squinting.

"Mmhmm," Lily mumbled, not trusting herself to speak.

"I can't see a bloody thing without my glasses," said James as he rubbed his small rectangular spectacles on his towel. "That's better. Sorry, Quidditch training ran late, and I didn't want to go to the meeting smelling like a sweat sock," James ran a hand through his very wet hair making it stick up. "I'll be right out. Looks like I'll have to wake 'ole Moony...he's fallen asleep."

Lily managed to nod, and she walked back down the hall towards the stairs. She stopped and leaned against the wall, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "Okay," she whispered to herself. "So he's good looking. Who cares? He's still arrogant and bigheaded and I'm not going to fall for him!"

"Fall for who?" Lily heard a familiar voice say. Remus had just walked up, looking very sleepy. "James will be out in one second, he claims. Now, who are you not falling for?"

"No one," she replied too quickly. Remus cocked an eyebrow.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Uh huh," Lily said, trying to sound convincing. Remus looked at her disbelievingly and nodded.

"Okay then..." he replied. James walked out a moment later, dressed and much drier. Lily cleared her throat and led the way out of the portrait hole, not looking at or speaking to James the whole way to the meeting.

When they reached the room, half the Prefects were already there and they were surprised to see the headmaster there as well. "Professor Dumbledore," Lily said confusedly, "what are you doing here?"

"I have an announcement to make when all the Prefects have arrived," he said brightly. Lily nodded and proceeded to her seat as the old man put his fingertips together and stared up at the ceiling.

After all the Prefects had arrived, Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat. "I am happy to announce that this year a Winter Ball will be held on the last day before holiday for the seventh year students. There should be one male and one female representative from each house to be on the committee. These representatives do not have to be Prefects, yet they may be if voted upon. The leaders of the committee will be the Head Boy and Girl, if they do not mind," Dumbledore said, looking over his half-moon spectacles at Lily and James. They both nodded and he continued. "Seventh years can of course invite younger students. I will come to the first meeting, which shall be Wednesday the week after next at eight o'clock in this room, to discuss what needs to be done. Any questions?" he asked with twinkling blue eyes. No one seemed to have any. "No? Well then I suppose I'll be going. Goodbye everyone," Dumbledore said.

"Goodbye, Professor," everyone chorused as the Headmaster left the room.

* * *

Nine o'clock rolled around, leaving Sara sitting in front of the fireplace waiting for Sirius. About five minutes later, he came running from the boys' dormitories into the common room with a silvery cloak in his grasp and an old piece of parchment, startling some second years sitting at a table near the tunnel. He saw Sara sitting by the hearth and walked over to her. "You ready?" He said grinning.

"Yeah," she replied, and he led her out the tunnel. "What are these for?" She asked once they got outside.

Sirius threw the cloak over the both of them. "This is James's Invisibility Cloak. Now we won't get caught. But just in case," Sirius told her, holding the parchment in front of them. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

The map came to life, and Sara gasped. "Where did you get that?"

"Shh...I'll explain when we get there," said Sirius, taking hold of her hand and leading her to the sixth floor and praying she'd forget to ask. Sirius wasn't sure he was ready to divulge the whole Marauder history to her yet. Checking the map, Sirius saw that no one was around. He removed the cloak from them and told Sara to wait for a second. Pacing back and forth three times in front of a plain wall with a pensive look on his face, Sara thought Sirius was going crazy. She looked at him oddly, until a door appeared on the empty wall. Sirius grinned at Sara and opened the door, beckoning her inside.

Sara gasped when she saw what was inside. A large grand piano sat in the corner of the room, facing the door. In front of it were a couple couches and a table with a bottle of Butterbeer and two mugs arranged on it. Sara turned around and wrapped her arms around Sirius, squeezing him happily. "How did you do this?" She exclaimed.

"This is the Room of Requirement. You just walk in front of it three times thinking about what you want it to have," Sirius explained.

"It's wonderful," Sara said, still in awe.

"So are you gonna play?" he asked. Sara released him and walked over to the piano. She raised the lid up, propping it open with the stand.

"What do you want to hear?" She asked, sitting down.

"I don't know. The only song I know is Chopsticks," Sirius laughed.

Sara grinned. "Okay, how about Arabesque?"

"Sure," he answered, and Sara began to play the tune with ease. For the next thirty minutes, she played, Sirius clapping after each piece. Finally, she finished and waved him over to the piano.

"Let's hear some Chopsticks," Sara suggested with a grin.

"I'm not even sure if I remember it," Sirius replied modestly.

"That's okay," she said, and began to reteach it to him.

* * *

"Thank you so much for this, Sirius. You have no idea how much I missed it," Sara said, laying her head on Sirius's shoulder. They sat on the couch together, one hand intertwined with the other's.

Sirius kissed her on the top of the head and replied, "You're welcome. It was my pleasure. You're a wonderful pianist." Sirius felt Sara start shaking beside him and realized it was with silent laughter. "What?" He asked curiously.

"That word always makes me laugh. Pianist," she repeated, laughing, "sounds like penis. You're a wonderful penis."

Sirius began laughing too. "Once, Mrs. Potter told me I was a good pianist, and I misunderstood her. I was quite embarrassed when she told me what she had actually said. That day still brings tears of laughter to James's eyes."

Sara continued to laugh. "Wow, I feel mature. Seventeen and laughing about the word penis. You must think I'm crazy or something."

"Not at all," Sirius replied. "Sara?"

"Yes, Sirius," she replied uncertainly.

"Are you...ticklish?" Sirius asked, releasing his hand from hers.

"NO!" Sara squealed and immediately started squirming around as his fingers moved around her stomach and side. She rolled off the couch and into the fetal position. "Stop!" She yelled breathlessly, laughing. "Wait a minute..." she said, cocking an eyebrow and looking up at Sirius. "Are you?" Sirius jumped up from her and ran to the piano. "Aha! You are!" They chased each other around the large room until Sara ran to the door where Sirius had left the invisibility cloak. She threw it over herself and giggled.

"Not fair!" Sirius called. He began walking around with arms outstretched, listening for foot steps. Sara moseyed over to the piano, played a few notes, and Sirius sprinted over to the instrument.

_CRACK! _Sirius heard all of a sudden.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow," Sara wailed. She fell on the floor, and the invisibility cloak slipped partly off.

Sirius ran over to the space in front of the fireplace where Sara sat holding her foot. "What happened?"

"I think I broke my toe," she sniffled.

"Which one?" he asked, looking at the foot she held in her lap.

"The big one."

"Okay," Sirius said and gingerly took her foot into his lap. He reached for his wand which was sitting on the table.

"You know healing charms?" Sara asked curiously.

"Uh huh," he replied, putting the tip of his wand to her toe and muttering a spell. "Can you move it?"

"Yeah," she said, demonstrating that she could. "Thanks."

Sirius held her foot for a moment, and as if waiting for the opportune moment, began to tickle it. Sara squealed and started kicking, evidently in the wrong places. Sirius let out a yelp of pain and fell backwards holding himself.

"Oh!" Sara whispered. "Sirius, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to," she apologized, turning around and laying down beside him. "Do you need a healing charm for it? I warn you, I'm not too good at them..."

Sirius grinned. "No, not a charm, but a massage might do it."

Sara hit him playfully. "Get up, you big baby."

"I don't want to get up," he said, shifting to where he was nose-to-nose with Sara. "I want to stay right here."

Sara thought her heart was going to stop right then and there. She gazed into Sirius's eyes, realizing for the first time how dark they were. Then, his eyelids fluttered shut. Sara widened hers, but then got a hold of herself and followed suit. Their lips met, and Sara was surprised at how extremely soft his were. Sirius deepened the kiss, and Sara put her arm around his neck. She could tell that he was quite experienced with this sort of thing. _Oh my, that means he can probably tell that I'm not_, she thought, but quickly forgot.

After what seemed like a lifetime, Sara and Sirius pulled apart, smiling to themselves. Sara laid her head in the crook of Sirius's arm and he absentmindedly played with her hair until they both fell asleep.

* * *

I know, total cliche ending. Sorry, my creativity only goes so far )

Please review!!


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